


Much Ado about Tony Stark

by Arabesqueangel



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Drama, Fluff and Angst, LITERALLY, M/M, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-27
Updated: 2019-08-31
Packaged: 2020-09-27 23:35:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20416166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arabesqueangel/pseuds/Arabesqueangel
Summary: “Sweetie, I know that I could get absolutely anybody in this school to go to the dance with me if I really wanted to. Hell, not just go to the dance with me, dating even, the whole nine yards,” Tony Stark said.“Oh really? Any person? Girl or boy? No matter how awkward? Even if you can’t stand them? You think you could still make them yours?”“Sure, any single student at this school. I don’t have to like a person to get them to like me; I’m that good.”“So, you wouldn’t mind proving it, then?”“A dare? Really? Are we twelve?” Tony sighed, then spoke up again, sounding curious despite himself. “Who did you have in mind?”“Loki Odinson.”





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [greenishio](https://archiveofourown.org/users/greenishio/gifts).

> For you Greenishio! I can only hope that this story is half as soft and adorable as your art! Also, I really hope you like drama references and shakespeare, otherwise, I am so sorry, I might have gone a bit overboard! The fic is five chapters long so you'll get one chapter per day up until the official exchange date on the 31st!
> 
> The prompt I chose was a high school AU that starts with Loki overhearing another student daring Tony to ask Loki out on a date. Loki has a crush on Tony but they aren't friends. Loki knows that it's just for a dare and Tony will probably humiliate him later, but he agrees to go out with Tony because he thinks its the closest he'll ever get. 
> 
> I'm not going to reveal more of the prompt so as not to spoil it, but I hope you enjoy!

“So, I heard Pepper turned you down for prom,” Tiberius (Ty to his friends, and no, that doesn’t include  _ you _ ) Stone taunted through the soundboard speakers as Loki turned them on to test them before the monthly student council address. 

Loki rolled his eyes. Tony Stark, the school’s student body president, had taken the mic earlier to practice his speech. Obviously, when he was done practicing he had forgotten to turn it off. Loki chuckled darkly to himself. He was alone in the sound booth, no one could see his eye roll. He didn’t have to pretend that he didn’t find every single thing that Tony did completely endearing, but it was an ingrained habit at this point after years of this ridiculous crush. 

“Technically, yeah she did. But that was just because she already told Happy she’d go with him. Pepper is way too nice to back out after agreeing to something. But honestly, I was really just asking her as a friend. I was looking for someone a little less high maintenance than the usual girl who is just looking to hang on the arm of the Prom King for pictures.” 

Stone laughed derisively and was joined by two or three other people. “Yeah, sure. You keep telling yourself that, Stark.” 

“Sweetie, I don’t need to tell myself that. I know that I could get absolutely anybody in this school to go to the dance with me if I really wanted to. Hell, not just go to the dance with me, dating even, the whole nine yards,” Tony responded. 

Tony may have been slightly overcompensating for his audience, but Loki believed him. He was charming to an alarming degree. Loki had spoken barely more than a handful of sentences with him directly over the years and he was already half in love. To have Tony’s direct attention? To have him put in the effort at seduction? Loki shuddered at the thought. 

“Oh really?” Stone questioned in a way that prickled the hairs on the back of Loki’s neck. “Any person? Girl or boy? No matter how awkward? Even if you can’t stand them? You think you could still make them yours?” 

Tony was a genius; Loki knew because they had shared several Honors and AP classes together. But if Tony could sense the danger in Tiberius’s tone, he didn’t give any indication. 

“Sure, any single student at this school. I don’t have to like a person to get them to like me; I’m that good.” 

“So, you wouldn’t mind proving it, then?” Stone prodded. 

Loki knew he shouldn’t be listening to this. He should turn off the sound, start working on getting everything else set up like he was supposed to be doing, but he was riveted. This peek into Tony Stark’s life was just too tempting. Plus, he couldn’t help his morbid curiosity at just what pathetic, unattractive misanthrope Stone was going to select to make Tony’s life miserable. 

“A dare? Really? Are we twelve?” Tony sighed. Loki sighed too. He thought that despite Tony’s bragging ways, he wasn’t really that shallow. He was glad to be proven correct. But then Tony just had to speak up again, sounding curious despite himself. “Who did you have in mind?” 

“Loki Odinson,” Stone said, not even able to say his full name without bursting into laughter. All the blood drained from Loki’s face and he suddenly felt a bit dizzy. 

“Thor’s little brother?” Tony asked, chuckling weakly through his obvious discomfort and disgust. “You’d really have to make it worth my while...” 

Loki flipped the switch immediately, shutting Tony’s voice off. He didn’t want to hear whatever Tiberius Stone was going to offer Tony that would make up for the obvious horror Tony had at having to try to woo Loki. Second to that was the mortification of once again being relegated to the position of ‘Thor’s little brother’ by his crush, just like everyone else. 

Thor was just under two years older than Loki, but Loki was only a year behind him in school, a junior to Thor’s senior due to skipping fourth grade. Tony, also a senior like Thor, was actually Loki’s age, having skipped several grades. But, of course, he was still Thor’s friend, not Loki’s. 

Because Thor was everything Loki was not; captain of the football team, handsome, muscular, blonde, friendly, talkative. He had an arrogant streak a mile wide, but no one else seemed to see it; everyone loved him. Loki, on the other hand, was very much a loner. He had a few friends, people to talk to in classes or at lunch, when he wasn’t hiding in the library with his nose in a book, but no one he was particularly close to. 

He was in drama; despite the required social interaction, he couldn’t resist the stage, the one time he could be sure that the attention and accolades were on him. But off it he was awkward, found conversations difficult; he hid behind dry, sarcastic humor when he was uncomfortable which made him come off as even less friendly than he actually was. 

The lack of brotherly resemblance didn’t stop with the social, either. Physically, he was very much Thor’s opposite as well. Skinny, pale, with shoulder-length black hair that he mostly neglected to hang lank and wavy. Only in height did Loki even approach Thor, coming up to just under an inch shorter than his older brother. Unfortunately, it only served to make him look even skinnier. He tended to dress in black, mostly baggy outfits to try to make himself look slightly less starved than he actually did. 

Loki knew he wasn’t very popular, wasn’t well liked. But he hadn’t known that he was a joke until hearing the laughter in Stone’s voice when he spoke his name. Loki’s face flushed a bright red and he was immensely grateful to be alone in the sound booth. He could do this; he would just forget that the conversation had ever happened, concentrate on his extracurriculars and in just one more month Tony would be graduated and Thor right along with him and maybe Loki could actually breathe again. 

Then Loki realized, his stomach dipping until he felt like he was going to be sick, if Tony actually took that bet, if Stone made a good enough case, Tony would try to talk to him. Tony would try to date him even. He’d be sweet, charming, funny and Loki wasn’t sure, even knowing what was behind it, that he would be able to resist. If Tony ever turned that brilliant smile in his direction, Loki knew he would just melt into the ground. He would never be able to turn away that kind of attention; he’d walk right into the trap despite seeing it clearly. 

Loki was mulling this conundrum over when Mr. Coulson, the vice principal, stepped into the booth. Loki tried to school his face into something calm and disinterested. He obviously failed. 

“Everything ok, Mr. Odinson?” Mr. Coulson asked, not unkindly. 

“Just fine, Mr. Coulson. We’re running a bit late, that’s all,” Loki stammered. 

Coulson nodded. “Yes, Mr. Stark is late, per usual. You get that boy talking and he never can pull himself away. I’ll go find him; I suspect I know where he might be.” 

Loki groaned when Coulson exited. Great, now he just got Tony into trouble. This could only go well for him. It wasn’t more than five minutes later that Coulson returned with a mildly chagrined Tony in tow. When the other boy entered the room and spotted Loki, he twitched. If Loki hadn’t been aware of the conversation Tony had just been having, Loki might not have noticed. 

“Oh... Loki. Hey, what are you doing here?” Tony asked. 

“I run the sound booth,” Loki responded dully, turning back to the equipment in front of him so he wouldn’t have to watch whatever reaction was about to run over his crush’s face. 

“No kidding? Since when?” Tony sounded a bit more sure of himself, working into the role, obviously. He would have been excellent on the stage. 

“Since all year, and the end of last year when they were training me,” Loki sniped. Of course Tony had never noticed. He was practically invisible. 

“No shit?” Tony barked out a small laugh. Then he winced at his language. “Sorry, Mr. Coulson.” 

“If you’re done chatting, you were supposed to have started the announcements two minutes ago,” Coulson prodded. 

“Oh, yeah. Sorry.” Tony fiddled with the mic, moving his thumb to turn it on and frowning when he realized that it was still in the on position. He nodded to Loki, who fed the mic through the school’s speakers. 

Tony went through the usual mundane details of their high school life. SAT test dates, prom court votes, the final basketball game of the season, the spring play dates, which Loki knew because he was in it. Loki spent the time staring straight ahead, not letting his gaze wander in his boredom. He refused to give Tony the satisfaction even while he mourned the excuse to look at him. 

Finally, Tony finished. Loki turned off the equipment and Mr. Coulson left, leaving the two boys alone in the sound booth. It was awkward, and Loki knew that wasn’t just on his end. 

“Good job, Stark. See you in physics,” Loki said as politely as he could, before shouldering past the other boy to leave the suddenly stifling room. 

“Wait, you’re in my physics class?” Tony asked, looking perplexed. 

Loki just stared at him in mute despair. He had been exaggerating, but maybe he really was invisible. Tony obviously hadn’t taken the bet, whatever Stone had offered. He would never speak so dismissively to someone he was trying to get to go out with him. Loki tried to convince himself that he was happy about this. Tony was a good person and Loki wouldn’t have to deal with his courting attempts. Everybody won, right? 

Loki realized he had been staring at Tony without speaking for an embarrassing amount of time. He just couldn’t manage to get any words out; what could he possibly say that wouldn’t just go in one ear and right out the other? Vanishing like all other details of Loki and Tony’s past interactions. So, Loki just turned on his heel and left, ducking his head down to avoid any sort of interaction as he walked through the halls to his homeroom class. 

*****

“You’re looking moodier than usual,” Darcy commented next to him. They were supposed to be working on their one-act plays, but Darcy could never resist the opportunity to gossip. 

“It’s just the eyeliner; he laid it on a bit thick today,” Natasha said from his other side. 

“I’m not the one who lays things on thick,” Loki said, looking between the two girls he could generously deem friends. They certainly nagged him enough. He berated himself internally for his thoughts as well as his words. No wonder no one liked him; he was a dick. 

“Sorry; I’m just trying to focus on my writing.”

“He’s pining,” Natasha said to Darcy over his head that he had ducked to concentrate on the paper. 

“Oh yeah... it was the monthly address from our fearless leader.” Darcy hummed knowledgably. “How is short, cute and mouthy?” 

How did they...? The thought trailed off as Loki looked into Natasha’s green eyes, darker than his own but just as sharp. Never mind, Natasha noticed everything and probably told Darcy. 

“Tony’s fine, I’m sure. It’s not like we talk,” Loki huffed, hoping, but not actually believing, they’d leave it at that. 

“Of course not, he’d have to notice something other than his own ego for that to happen,” Natasha snapped. 

Loki knew Natasha was just defending him, and she wasn’t entirely wrong, but the comment still hit a little too close to home. Loki hunched his shoulders, just wanting to disappear into the table below him. 

“What are we talking about?” Clint asked, leaning in from the row behind them. 

“Your pathetic acting skills,” Natasha responded quickly. 

Clint snorted. “I’m awesome and you know it.” 

“Which, of course, is why you got Verges with less than twenty lines,” Loki played along. 

“That’s because I had archery practice during callbacks, and you know it... Senor Benedict,” Clint shot back good-naturedly. 

Loki fought the urge to preen. He was so excited to be doing one of his favorite Shakespeare plays, Much Ado About Nothing, and his favorite character no less. Benedict had a dry wit and a sly tongue that appealed to Loki greatly. And with Natasha as Beatrice, his character’s dueling partner/love interest, it was even more fun. Darcy had gotten the part of Hero, the sweet put-upon bride, which set them all into laughter at the time, but she was very pleased. Honestly, Loki knew Clint would have been a fantastic Claudio, Hero’s love, if he had just been able to be there for the auditions. 

“Actually, we were talking about Tony Stark,” Darcy clarified. 

“Oh, yeah. I heard Pepper turned him down for Prom, but he’s refused like every girl who’s gotten up the courage to ask him,” Clint put in. “And if he doesn’t hurry up, he'll have no one to ask pretty soon.” 

Loki concentrated on the words in progress on the paper below him. Perhaps the characters should kiss here? No, what was he thinking writing a romance? He was the last one who should be preaching about love. Yes, he would concentrate on the calamity that was his writing and not Natasha’s eyes that were burning a hole in the side of his head. Nope, he did not care about Tony Stark’s relationship woes, not in the slightest. 

In a fit of dramatic pique, Loki crumpled the piece of paper into a ball and tossed it over to Clint. Clint grinned at him and concentrated for a moment before tossing the ball of paper across the room, neatly sinking it into the small trash can. 

“Barton, could we please not throw trash all the way across the room?” Ms. Van Dyne requested. 

“I made the shot; I didn’t litter or anything,” Clint argued. 

“It’s distracting the people who are actually trying to work on their final project rather than gossiping,” she responded. 

Clint grumbled his assent and Loki used the silence to get back to work. Horror maybe? Yeah, he could do with some horror. Death, monsters, anything but love. 

“So, back to gossiping,” Darcy picked up after a moment. 

“Pepper’s just a friend, so I know Tony can’t be that crushed by her refusal. I wonder why he doesn’t seem to want anyone else. I wonder if he has someone in mind that he doesn’t think he can get?” Natasha offered. 

The chatter died down for so long that Loki finally looked up from where he was currently murdering an innocent bystander. All three people, who were far too invested in Loki’s love life for his taste, were looking at him expectantly. 

“Why are you looking at me? How am I supposed to know?” Loki asked. 

“You have two classes with him,” Darcy said. 

“Thor’s one of his good friends,” Clint said.

“You spent at least an hour together this morning when he was practicing and doing the announcements,” Natasha finished. 

“Well, I have nothing for you busybodies so just lay off. I’m trying to raise ghosts over here,” Loki snarled halfheartedly. 

Darcy snorted. “You  _ would _ do a ghost story.” 

The way she looked him up and down, taking in the black clothes, the black hair, the black eyeliner and black nail polish, spoke volumes. To be fair, though, the black hair was natural. Ok, so other than the fact that he preferred the less form-fitting clothing, he was a bit of a walking cliché, but it worked for him. People knew what they were getting and didn’t look too much deeper. Their eyes practically passed him over. That was good, right? Loki remembered that being a good thing, but he was having a hard time remembering why with the vision of brown eyes locked on his swimming before his mind’s eye. 

*****

Loki’s melancholy took him through to last period, physics. His previous period, Calculus, was right down the hall, so he always got to class early. He often used the time to talk with the physics teacher, Dr. Strange, who was his favorite. He was crazy smart and had done so much with his life. Loki had no idea why he was relegated to teaching boring old physics in a high school, but he suspected it had something to do with the scars on his hands. He definitely wasn’t going to ever ask. 

Loki took his usual chair in the front and center of the class, but hid in his book instead of initiating conversation with Dr. Strange. The man raised a questioning eyebrow but said nothing. As the passing period waned down, more and more students clamored in. Once again, Loki felt a pair of eyes on him, odd since none of his friends had this particular class. 

Loki looked up to see Tony Stark in the desk next to him, staring at him expectantly. Loki just stared back, mouth slightly open in surprise. He was sure he looked like a total idiot, but he had no idea what to say. Tony usually sat in the very back row, making no attempt to even appear like he was paying attention. He didn’t have to. He passed every test and assignment with flying colors anyways. 

“So, I felt really bad about earlier. I mean, we’ve had this class all year together and I didn’t even realize you were in it? And here you are sitting front and center and my brain just went, ‘hey, you should have known that, dumbass’.” Tony said. 

Loki had forgotten how to blink. That probably wasn’t good. 

“And not realizing you were the one running the sound booth when it’s been you, me and Agent all year? Total dick move,” Tony continued. 

“You call Mr. Coulson ‘Agent’?” Loki said. Ok, he had found words. He wasn’t sure why he had picked those particular ones, but words were still an improvement.

“Doesn’t he just look like one of those secret government agency guys? He’s got that kind of face and don’t get me started on his suits...” Tony trailed off grinning. 

Loki was pretty sure he was supposed to do something friendly, like smile, but he didn’t seem to have access to that part of his brain at the moment. All he could think of was that Tony had taken the dare. He had screwed up initial contact, and here he was trying to make up for it; setting the groundwork for his seduction. And Loki so wanted to be mad, but there he was, the absolute center of Tony’s attention, and he couldn’t help soaking it up like the dry sponge he was. 

“So, anyways, what I’m trying to say is, sorry. Sorry, I’m a total self-centered ass,” Tony finished, his smile wavering in light of Loki’s lack of response. 

“Ok,” Loki managed finally. 

“I was kind of hoping for something along the lines of, ‘Oh, you aren’t an ass, Tony, just a little scatterbrained. It happens. I forgive you.’ But, I guess I’ll have to take ‘ok’. Just means that I have more to make up for.” 

“You really don’t,” Loki responded, silently begging the guy to shut up before he melted into his chair. 

“I really think I do,” Tony said firmly, before fucking  _ winking _ at him. Loki looked down at his combat boots, fully expecting them to be black goo to indicate that the melting process had started. 

“Why?” Loki whispered, hoping against hope for some other explanation than ‘I’m using you to settle a bet with my frenemy.’ 

“What?” Tony asked, leaning in so he could hear Loki better. 

“Why do you care? I’m no one. Why would you remember me anyway? It’s fine,” Loki babbled. Invisible. This would be a really good time to actually turn invisible. 

“The look on your face when I didn’t remember you,” Tony said, looking truly uneasy for the first time in this uncomfortable conversation. “You looked kind of... crushed. I felt bad. I’m a problem solver. I don’t like feeling bad, so I need to fix it. To fix it, I have to un-crush you. So here I am.” 

Loki just cocked his head. It was a logical explanation, despite the odd Tony-speak. Tony was good, really good. He could almost believe that was the reason that he was doing this and not some dare. He wanted so badly to believe it that he could almost taste it. But what he could taste was sour on his tongue, telling him it wasn’t something to be consumed. 

Tony felt the need to fill Loki’s continued silence. “Forget I said ‘un-crush’, that was super weird. I just felt like if I got to know you, I’d always remember you. I mean, I’m buddies with Thor and we’re practically the same age. Hell, I’ve been over to your house more times than I can count. No reason we can’t get to know one another.” 

Tony was offering Loki everything he wanted on a silver platter. It was actually cheap, plastic food on an aluminum tray, but it was still so much more than Loki ever thought he could get. He could do this; he could spend time with Tony, enjoying whatever attention he got as long as he knew it was all false. So, he smiled at Tony, opened his mouth to accept... 

“Let’s get started on velocity, shall we?” Dr. Strange cut in. 

Loki looked around. He hadn’t even realized that everyone had taken their seats and the bell had rung. His entire world had narrowed down to Tony Stark. He honestly hadn’t realized how bad he had it until he actually had a conversation with him. Loki shook his head, trying to knock some of the Tony daze loose and concentrate on what Dr. Strange was talking about. 

Loki’s phone buzzed in his pocket, which was odd since everyone who had his number knew he didn’t text in class. He surreptitiously pulled his phone out.

UNKNOWN: K, so I think you were going to agree. So... Im going with were totally almost friends now

LOKI: How did you get my number? 

TONY STARK: Tony Stark 

LOKI: That’s borderline creepy. 

TONY STARK: but only borderline...

LOKI: You do realize we’re sitting in the front of class, right? I’m shocked Strange hasn’t noticed yet and taken our phones 

TONY STARK: Ugh no

Why r we here? 

Its harder 2 screw around

LOKI: Maybe because I actually want to learn? 

TONY STARK: Learning is overrated 

LOKI: Says the genius... 

TONY STARK: U know the way 2 my <3

Loki looked up at that and Tony winked again. Loki’s heart literally skipped a beat. But he rolled his eyes and very distinctly put his phone back in his pocket. Tony sighed, but then turned and stared at Dr. Strange with such over-exaggeratedly rapt attention that Loki couldn’t help but giggle. The teacher turned around at the sound and frowned at Loki who mouthed an apology. But it was hard to feel that guilty when Tony was beaming as if Loki had made his day. 

Yeah, Loki was in trouble. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so pleased with the reception for this fic already! I hope you like the rest of it just as much!

Tony Stark on a mission was baffling, alluring and somewhat scary. He texted Loki off and on all night and into the next day. He had apologized again that morning during third period when he realized that they had Humanities together in addition to Physics. Loki wore a constant blush from all of the scrutiny. He was enjoying some quiet respite at a tucked away lunch table. Tony usually went off-campus with Thor, Steve, Rhodey and Bucky for lunch most days. Loki had a full hour of blissful, and not at all lonely and disappointing, solitude. 

“Favorite color... go!” came an all too familiar voice behind him. Loki jumped and looked to see Tony Stark standing there holding a coke, a bag of hot cheetos and a package of mini powdered donuts. 

“Please tell me that isn’t your lunch,” Loki blurted as Tony sat down beside him. 

Loki could swear that all talking in an eight-foot radius around them halted at the utter ridiculousness of Tony Stark, student body president, shoo-in Prom King and all-around popular guy sitting down at some rando table with Loki Odinson. Still, it was easy to ignore with those brown eyes locked onto him. 

“Meal of champions. Answer the question.” 

“Your abhorrent nutrition choices have chased all thoughts from my brain. What did you ask?” Sure, Loki, blame it on the junk food. 

“Favorite color,” Tony provided. 

Loki looked down pointedly at his long-sleeve black shirt and his black pants. He pointedly admired his newly-painted black fingernails. This time they were sparkly; he wasn’t  _ that  _ repetitive. 

“Don’t say black. No one’s favorite color is black.” 

“Well maybe mine is. Maybe I’m just that weird. Maybe you should go find some interesting, not-black-liking person.” Oh god, he was starting to talk like Tony now too. He was doomed. 

“Why are you so uncomfortable, Lokes? We’re just having a conversation.” 

“This isn’t a conversation; it’s an interrogation. And don’t call me Lokes.” 

“Really though.” Tony actually appeared earnest. “What’s wrong?” 

Loki squirmed uncomfortably. What was wrong? This was all a ruse and he was loving every second of it far too much.  _ That’s _ what was wrong. “I’m just not used to this much attention.” 

“Don’t you do the whole drama thing? Isn’t that like having all the attention?” 

“What was the fall play and what part did I have?” Loki asked. 

“Uhhh.... shit. Ok, I kind of see your point. Although... that’s kind of sad, huh?” 

Loki wasn’t really sure how to answer that so he just shrugged. 

“He was Jake in Jake’s Women.” Natasha sat down next to Loki, staring daggers at Tony pointedly. 

“Oh, the lead, huh? Impressive.” Tony grinned at Loki, completely ignoring the death-glare Natasha was sending his way.

“Do you need him removed? Because I will happily do so,” Natasha offered, smiling with far too many teeth back at Tony. 

“Ok, you’re terrifying,” Tony said before turning back to Loki. “Is she your friend? Because I like her.” 

Natasha was momentarily caught off guard. Loki smiled a bit to see that he was not the only one off his game when combating Tony’s charm. 

“No, I don’t need him removed. He’s mostly behaving himself,” Loki said, ignoring Tony’s friend question. 

_ “Mostly  _ behaving myself? Take that back! I’ve never mostly behaved myself in my life! The nerve! The audacity!” Tony ranted dramatically, before leaning in and whispering conspiratorially, but loudly, with Natasha, “What does ‘mostly behaving myself’ mean?” 

“It means you’re less annoying than Thor,” Darcy responded sitting across from Loki with Clint not far behind, taking a seat next to her. 

“Oh cool. I’ll take it.” Tony smiled and stuffed a mini donut in his mouth, the white powder flecking down onto his red shirt. His next words were barely intelligible around the mass in his mouth. “Hey Clint.” 

Clint was one of those rare move-betweens. Not only did he do drama and archery, but he was the kicker for the football team. Most people knew and liked him. Loki had no idea why Clint wasted his time talking to Loki, but he suspected it was due to a crush on Natasha. 

“Hey Tony. What are we talking about?” Clint asked good-naturedly. 

“I’m trying to get goth-boy over here to admit to a favorite color OTHER than black.” 

“It’s green.” All of them turned to stare at Darcy, looking deceptively innocent as always. “What? I’ve been in your room.” 

“My mom picked that all out,” Loki muttered. 

“Green, I like it. Matches your eyes,” Tony said. “Ok, well, I’m off. Gotta give you kids some time to gossip about me.”

Tony took a few steps away before turning around like he had forgotten something. 

“Loki, last night, you mentioned how you never get to watch any of the movies you like with Thor around. I was just thinking, maybe you want to come over to my place after class? Maybe watch a movie? I definitely have better taste than Thor.” 

Loki felt the heat of three avid gazes. His blush was definitely back in full force. Plastic fruit, he reminded himself. But... Tony’s place. How could he possibly turn down that opportunity? 

By having other plans, of course. 

“Sorry, Tony. But we have play rehearsal after school today,” Loki said. 

“Oh, another one?” Tony seemed perplexed. 

“Just like last year and the year before that; we have a fall play and a spring play.” Natasha teased. 

“So, what’s this one?” Tony asked; he seemed genuinely interested. It really was amazing how well the guy could act. He had seriously missed his calling by not going into theater. 

“Much Ado About Nothing,” Loki responded. 

“And who are you? The lead again?” Tony asked, grinning at Loki. 

“Benedict, and not really, it’s a pretty big ensemble cast,” Loki responded, eyes dipping down furtively. 

“He does have the most lines of anyone, though,” Darcy added. “So it’s a pretty big deal.” 

Why did people have friends? What possible good were they? 

“Well, that’s seriously awesome. I can’t wait to see it. How about Thursday for the movie then?” 

“Thursday I can do,” Loki agreed, struggling not to sigh like a lovesick schoolgirl when Tony beamed at him. 

“See ya then!” Tony winked and then turned on his heel and disappeared. 

Loki contemplated the mysteries of the universe that were contained in his salad dressing; it was far safer than looking up at his three friends practically panting for details. Finally, though, the silence became too much. 

“Fine, ask,” Loki said. 

“What could have possibly happened since drama yesterday?” Darcy asked. 

“Dude, you’re going over to Stark’s place. He doesn’t invite anyone over,” Clint said.

“What does he want?” Natasha questioned. 

Loki flinched, mostly at Natasha’s question. He couldn’t bring himself to admit what he had overheard. That he knew exactly what Tony wanted and it wasn’t him. He could just lie, but if there was anyone who would be able to tell when he lied, it was Natasha. Partial truth, then. 

“He said something stupid the other day, felt bad and now, in typical Tony Stark fashion, he’s going completely overboard to make up for it,” Loki said, looking Natasha directly in the eyes and not wavering. 

She nodded. “Sounds like him. How bad was it? Do I need to hurt him? He won't even know it was me.” 

“I don’t think he could have said anything that would be worth that!” Clint protested with a laugh. 

Loki shrugged. “He just didn’t remember me, that’s all. It’s fine.” 

Natasha cracked a small smile. “So you’re loving all the attention, but you don’t trust it.” 

Loki barked a bitter laugh. Oh, wasn’t that the truth? 

“Come on, Loki. We all know you’ve been in love with Tony since he first came over to your house in 8 th grade and said he liked your Lord of the Rings poster,” Darcy said, exasperated. 

“That was also my mother,” Loki muttered. “And... how did you know that? I don’t remember ever telling you that. Any of you.” 

He glared at the three of them before narrowing in on Natasha. She actually squirmed. Busted. 

“I may have read a... helpful book,” Natasha admitted. 

“I’m never letting any of you in my house ever again,” Loki warned. 

“Hey! Technically, I never said anything room related or read your journal,” Clint protested. 

“Have you ever even been over to my house?” Loki asked. 

“No, actually, and I’m offended; you need to fix this,” Clint berated. 

Loki was caught off-guard once again. Did Clint actually want to hang out? Just the two of them? It was a really weird day. 

“Ok, I will,” Loki said finally and Clint beamed at him. Loki shrugged off his discomfort. One problem at a time. “Anyway, I’m sure Tony’s usual group was just out or busy and he was bored. It doesn’t mean anything.” 

“Sorry, dude. But I have fourth period with all of them. They went out to lunch together sans Tony,” Clint said with a grin. 

Loki looked down to hide the smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth. 

“OMG, Loki’s blushing,” Darcy cooed. “It’s adorable.” 

Loki looked up at her, beaming rather than wearing his usual scowl. At that point he just couldn’t help it. 

***** 

“So, I thought we could watch Lord of the Rings,” Tony announced when Loki finally arrived at his place after the longest day of his entire life. 

Once again, Loki found himself struck mute. It wasn’t a common occurrence for him, not that the last few days were any indication of that. He was always able to come up with a quick quip or a witty jab, but with Tony... well, Tony was an exception for a lot of things. 

“You remembered... I mean, did you?” It seemed impossible considering he couldn’t even remember that Loki was in the same classes as him. 

“Yeah, I did actually.” 

“But...” Loki started, not sure how to ask the question that was on his mind without completely insulting the guy. 

“How could I possibly remember that when I forgot practically everything else?” Tony asked wryly. Loki just nodded. Tony sighed. 

“I actually have a really good memory. No, really,” Tony protested at Loki’s skeptical eyebrow. “It’s why I pass tests like a champ. I remember oodles of stuff. I just don’t have a lot of control over what I remember. Some things I work really hard to retain and they never manage to stick. Birthdays! Birthdays are the worst. But other things, I don’t even really pay half-attention to them and yet I never forget them for the rest of my life. Like a skinny brat’s awesome Lord of the Rings poster.” 

“I wasn’t a brat,” Loki protested. Tony tried to do the eyebrow raise. He was terrible at it and Loki giggled. “Ok, maybe a bit. But Thor always deserved it.” 

Tony snorted. “Yeah, I’m sure you never started anything.” 

He led Loki into the living room and gestured for him to get settled on the couch. Loki did so and found himself staring at the largest television he’d ever seen in his life. He knew that Tony’s dad founded and ran Stark Enterprises, so they were very rich, even more so than Loki’s parents, but it was interesting to have the proof right there in your face in this massive house. Tony generally dressed like he just raided the local Goodwill, all faded t-shirts and jeans. 

“So, Clint says that you never invite people over to your place,” Loki said to fill the silence while Tony rummaged through his vast collection of discs. 

“Uh... Yeah. Not really,” Tony said, not turning around and continuing to look for the disc. When he found it, he pumped his fist in victory and grinned back at Loki after he popped it in. 

“Why not? It’s very nice.” 

Tony snorted. “It’s fancy and over the top, you mean.” 

“My family isn’t exactly poor,” Loki pointed out. They weren’t Stark Enterprises rich, but the Odinsons were old money and, while politics wasn’t the  _ most _ lucrative career money-wise, it wasn’t anything to sneeze at either. 

“Yeah, but I like your house; it’s warm, cozy even. This place is just...” Tony wrinkled his nose. “Anyways, my dad’s just... not very welcoming. And my mom’s never here. It’s just easier to be elsewhere.” 

Tony threw himself down on the couch dramatically, wriggling until he was in what he considered to be a comfortable spot, which just happened to be brushing thighs with Loki. He fought to maintain a neutral face, but he couldn’t control the way his heart raced at the contact. 

“I don’t really get along with my father,” Loki blurted. Yes, that should kill the mood nicely, he thought. 

“Yeah, Mr. Odinson seems like a tough bastard. I’m with you there.” Tony half smiled in solidarity. 

The disc was on the menu screen, they just had to press play. Tony didn’t seem inclined to move toward the remote. 

“Why didn’t you ask to come over to my place then? You said you like it. You’ve been there before,” Loki asked. 

“Well, first of all, if my mom taught me anything it is that it’s rude to invite yourself over to someone else’s place.” Tony grinned. “Secondly, I figured Thor might be there.” 

“But you and Thor are friends...” Loki didn’t get it. With Thor there, Tony could actually hang out with someone he liked but under the pretense of being with Loki. It was the ideal situation. 

“This is about getting to know  _ you _ . I know Thor,” Tony said, turning to look directly at Loki with that statement. 

It was a really good thing that Loki was already sitting, because he could feel his knees turn to jelly at that statement, at those eyes looking at him so intently. His eyes started to water. Blinking, yes, Loki kept forgetting that was something he needed to do. He blinked and looked away awkwardly. 

“Anyways, I didn’t want to have to deal with how Thor might react to me cuddling up with his younger brother. I mean, the guy might be a big puppy dog, but he’s still strong as hell,” Tony said with an awkward chuckle. 

“Cuddle?” Loki repeated the word that got stuck in his brain. There was something about puppies and Thor, but he was pretty sure he got the most important bit. 

“Well, yeah. What’s the point in watching a movie with someone if you don’t snuggle?” Tony asked. 

As if to demonstrate, he put his arm around Loki and wriggled in a bit closer until their entire sides were pressed together. Loki had to lean a bit so that the arm rested comfortably on his shoulders since he was taller than Tony. As he settled, he finally decided, screw it, and kicked his shoes off, pulling his legs up onto the couch so that they were tucked under him and he was leaning into the other teen. Loki could have sworn that Tony’s smile literally lit up the room; it was that bright. Finally, Tony seemed content to pick up the remote and start the movie. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The plot thickens...

Tony had been working on his seduction for a week and a half, and it was still just as baffling and nerve wracking. It made Loki nervous, not because he was uncomfortable around Tony still, but because he was starting to get comfortable, get used to the feeling. He couldn’t think of anything more dangerous. 

Loki was musing on this, book open and forgotten in front of him, at the library on Thursday night. Other than the previous week, when he’d been at Tony’s, Loki spent every Thursday night at the library to avoid Thor and his friends. He did his homework, read or listened to music, anything rather than listen to the inane conversation and video games that would be going on at his house.

Loki had been tempted to stay home for the first time that he could remember. Tony had asked Loki if he was sticking at home tonight, to which Loki had replied that he’d be at the library, but Tony hadn’t seemed interested in asking him to hang out again. Which meant he was probably over at Loki’s house right now. Tony didn’t come over often on Thursdays, it was mostly Thor’s football friends, but he did show up on occasion. 

Loki moaned and dropped his head into his hands. This crush had been so much easier when it had been all detached. He wasn’t a complete fool. He knew he had been more in love with the concept of Tony than the actual guy. He didn’t  _ know _ Tony. Or, at least, he  _ hadn’t _ known Tony. He was ridiculously open, and when you let him talk, he  _ talked. _ It hadn’t been overly long, but Loki definitely felt like he knew quite a bit about Tony now. He wasn’t so sure Tony could say the same. Loki had loosened up a bit just through general exposure; he couldn’t be tense and nervous all the time after all. 

But Loki still hadn’t talked much about himself at all, besides answering whatever questions Tony asked. Words seemed to just fall out of his brain whenever there was a gap for Loki to speak. Loki was sure that Tony had to think he was slow or something. Or, maybe, that was the reason Tony was still around. Maybe if Loki had the presence of mind to let his sarcasm loose and actually be himself, Tony would run for the hills. But Natasha and Darcy had definitely tested Tony’s tolerance for jibes and Tony had passed with flying colors, taking and giving back with a grin. Just maybe, if Loki could manage to let a bit of himself out, Tony would actually enjoy it. However, Loki wasn’t sure if that would be even worse.

Loki was startled from his thoughts by the sound of his phone buzzing in his pocket, indicating that he had a text message.

TONY STARK: me + library = disaster waiting to happen

Loki looked around surreptitiously. Tony couldn’t be here, could he? Loki couldn’t see him. Maybe he was just talking in general? Thinking on that whole ‘being himself’ musing, Loki decided to respond:

LOKI: Maybe I like a little danger?

A few seconds letter, an inordinately loud ping went off somewhere back in the stacks and Loki heard a voice hiss ‘shit’ that could only belong to one person. Loki snickered. Tony was definitely here, and he forgot to put his cell on silent. 

TONY STARK: :Wide-eyed emoji: not what i was anticipating

TONY STARK: also… see?

A moment later, Tony came walking out of the stacks to Loki’s right looking sheepish. Loki couldn’t help the big grin that burst on his face at how adorable he was. Tony responded with a much more attractive grin and walked over to sit down beside him. 

“What are you doing here?” Loki whispered.

“You’re here,” Tony responded, like that answered anything. “I figured maybe you wouldn’t mind the distraction for a bit?”

“Depends on how good the distraction is,” Loki responded.

Tony’s eyes lit up in challenge. “Other than my devilishly handsome self and sparkling wit?”

While Loki may have been comfortable enough that he could find some more of his own words than he had been able to initially, they definitely flew out of his head once again at that question. 

“If your blush wasn’t so cute, I’d stop trying to make it happen,” Tony said after realizing that Loki wasn’t going to be able to offer a response.

“Somehow I doubt that,” Loki muttered without thinking. 

Tony burst out into laughter before wincing. “Crap, I was so not meant for libraries. I don’t suppose I can convince you to get out of here?”

“Well, I kind of like the idea of you getting into trouble,” Loki hedged and Tony smirked. “And I was trying to get inspiration for my one-act play for Advanced Drama, it’s due in a bit.”

Tony looked over at the books that Loki had in front of him.  _ Ghost Tales of Victorian London  _ and  _ Spiritual Entities Bound to our Realm _ . 

“Horror story, huh? Never would have guessed,” Tony snorted. 

That comment, coming from Darcy, Loki would have rolled his eyes and shot right back at her. From Tony, well, Loki knew he could take it, but was it just a joke? Or was it Tony’s true feelings eking through all the flirtatiousness?

“But, I suppose, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it,” Tony said with a laugh, relieving some of the tension in Loki’s chest that had been building from his thoughts. “Or, if you’re me, try to improve it and make something completely unrelated that doesn’t work for its original function anymore.”

Loki laughed, “Oh, your mother must just love you helping out around the house.”

The minute the words came out of his mouth, Loki cringed. He didn’t know the whole story with Tony’s mom and their relationship, but Tony’s comment of her never being around indicated it wasn’t great. 

“Nah, not really,” Tony said lightly, but Loki could tell his smile was a bit forced. Well, if he was going to brush it off, Loki certainly wasn’t going to direct notice to it. 

“You know, I am a bit hungry. We could go get something to eat for a bit? Keep you from getting thrown out of here anyways?” Loki rushed to change the subject.

“Food sounds good!” Tony smiled, “But here I thought you liked the danger?”

“There’s danger, and then there’s suicide. Have you seen the librarian?” Loki shuddered dramatically. 

Tony didn’t quite catch his laugh in time so the bellow sounded something more like a strangled cat. Loki had to fight to stifle his own giggles. He grabbed his backpack and started physically pushing Tony through the door. He didn’t even think about the motion until afterward. How comfortable he had been to just lay hands on Tony like it was nothing. Like they were friends. Like they could be something more. 

*****

Just a few weeks ago, if someone had told Loki that he would be sitting in the passenger seat of Tony Stark’s Audi on a Saturday night, he would have laughed in their face. But here he was doing just that. It all felt surreal, like some dream that Loki had magically projected into reality. Yes, Loki knew the reason for it, but that didn’t make it feel any less Twilight Zone. 

“I think you are like the first guy ever who has been in my car without making some comment about it,” Tony said.

What was there to say? It was a car. Sure, it was red, but he could have called that from a mile away. It was expensive, but Loki had no idea how expensive. He couldn’t have come up with the model to save his life. 

“Umm… I like the dashboard?”

“Are you trolling me?” Tony asked, turning for a brief squint at him.

“Mostly? No, but I’m not going to give you any satisfaction when you fish for compliments like that.”

“Touche,” Tony said with a grin.

“Are you going to tell me where we’re going yet?” Loki asked. 

Tony grinned at him. “You’re really not grasping the concept of surprise are you, Lokes?”

“I don’t like surprises; and don’t call me Lokes,” Loki grumbled.

“How can you not like surprises? Everyone likes surprises! Birthdays, Christmas, parties…”

“All occasions to show just how much everyone prefers Thor to me.” 

As soon as the words came out of his mouth, Loki wanted to take them back. They sounded petty and whiny and so much the jealous little brother that he was. Loki couldn’t let himself forget that Tony was Thor’s friend, first and foremost. The last thing Loki needed was Tony sharing these little comments with Thor and further straining their already frayed relationship. 

“I can’t really relate, I don’t have a brother,” Tony said with a sympathetic twist of his mouth, “but all my presents are picked out by my dad’s assistant. Pretty clear where the preference is there, huh? I still hope though. Every year I still rip through that wrapping paper and wish that I’d find something that showed that my dad was paying attention, just once.” Tony snorted darkly. “Maybe someday my purported genius will actually manage to catch up with me and I’ll learn. That would be nice.”

Tentatively, Loki stuck out his hand to rub at Tony’s knee. Tony turned to him with a small, but real smile before turning back to the road. Neglect came in all forms. And it didn’t have to be the same for someone else to understand. Tony was competing for parental love just as much as Loki was, was losing just as badly as Loki was, they just had different rivals. 

It was these little peeks at the imperfect, unglamorous sides of Tony Stark that made Loki crazy. He could see so clearly how well they could work together. How much they could empathize with each other’s situation. This could actually be something real, if it wasn’t all built on a lie. 

The rest of the ride was in mostly comfortable silence, until finally Tony pulled into a parking lot and Loki realized where they were.

“You have got to be kidding me,” Loki muttered. “You are the troll.”

Tony laughed. “Come on! You’re a goth and it’s a graveyard. You can’t tell me you’ve never been here.”

“I’ve never been here,” Loki said, deadpan. 

“Really? I’m honestly surprised. I really thought this was a thing all the goth kids did.” 

“Who would I have come with? I may be a loner, but I’m not pathetic enough to hang around a cemetary by myself at night.” Loki said, starting to bristle at the conversation.

“Oh… yeah, I guess Natasha, Clint and Darcy aren’t exactly goths,” Tony mused.

“And Clint isn’t even exactly my friend,” Loki continued for him.

That caused Tony to pause, to look at him fully, frown deepening. “Why would you say that?”

Loki shrugged uncomfortably. “He’s on the football team, he’s popular, why would he be?”

“I’m not on the football team, but I’m popular and friends with you,” Tony countered.

Yes, but only because of some bet or dare or whatever Tony was getting out of it that wasn’t the satisfaction of spending time with Loki. Instead Loki said, “Yes, but as we’ve established, you’re a troll.”

Tony chuckled. “Really though, Clint’s your friend.”

“He just has a crush on Natasha, that’s all.”

“No, sorry. I know Clint. He has the biggest mouth in the school and that’s coming from  _ me _ . If he was only around you because of Natasha and didn’t actually like you? You’d know about it. Hell, the whole school would know about it. Ergo, friends.” Tony finished the statement as if there was no possibility for argument. 

And honestly? It was a compelling case. Clint was not exactly shy about sharing his opinions, even if it got him into trouble. Sometimes, especially if it got him into trouble. Why had Loki never made that connection before? Being around Tony was confusing enough, he didn’t need all this to work through. 

“However, we strayed from my point. I didn’t just bring you here because you’re a goth, even though that was a fringe benefit. I interrupted your ghost research. I thought this might help out with your one act,” Tony said, getting out of the car. Loki got out as well as Tony grabbed a backpack from the backseat. 

“That’s sweet, Tony.” Loki said, just managing not to coo at the thoughtfulness. “But I’m not sure anything will help. I don’t know why Ms. Van Dyne has it in her head that we should be able to write plays. We’re actors, not writers.”

Tony snorted. “Fair point.”

Loki grinned at him. “At least they are going to be so funny to read. Clint’s is going to be hilariously bad; I guarantee it.”

“If you don’t somehow sneak me a copy, you’re dead to me,” Tony joked. 

“Well, I suppose we can’t have that. Then again, at least I’d fit in.” Loki waved his hand to the gravestones now surrounding them. 

It was a pretty spooky atmosphere. Loki couldn’t argue about the mood it set. There were several larger statues among the typical short stones and plaques. There was a particularly creepy angel one that the light kept hitting in a peculiar way so that it appeared to move out of the corner of Loki’s eye. Loki walked up closer to inspect it, shivering a bit as the blank eyes seemed to follow him behind the hands that it held up. 

“Loki!” 

Loki jumped and possibly yelped. He would not confirm or deny that second bit. He turned around to see where Tony had gotten, since the voice sounded farther away than he would have thought. He walked back and until Tony came into view once again, and had to stare. Tony had laid out a blanket on the ground. Spread out were several different drinks, sandwiches and bags of chips. Tony had brought a picnic. To a cemetery. Loki wasn’t sure if that was crazy or romantic. 

“Did you look up advice on impressing goths? Where did picnic in a graveyard fall on the list?” Loki asked. 

“Would I lose points if I told you third?” Tony responded immediately, causing Loki to laugh. 

Tony was so good at this. Why did he have to be so good at this?

*****

“So, when’s the big play? Are you excited? I’m excited.” Tony babbled. He had joined them for lunch again which he had been doing every few days for the last several weeks. Loki was almost starting to get used to it. His heart only skipped a beat four times, five max, now. 

“It’s this Friday, Saturday and Sunday actually,” Loki said. 

“You read off the dates during the announcements just a few weeks ago,” Natasha pointed out. 

“Who remembers that kind of stuff?” Tony waved his hand negligently 

“Maybe someone who’s dating one of the leads?” Darcy asked pointedly. 

Everything went silent. Really, Loki was fairly sure someone had pushed the mute button on the entire cafeteria. He had no control of his own neck as it turned to look over at Tony to see how he was taking this. The slightly parted lips and wide eyes indicated that he was taking it about as well as Loki. So, they weren’t dating right? A few weeks of hanging out and texting constantly wasn’t dating, surely? He truly had nothing to go on. But, if it was dating, Tony had already won the bet. So, what was he still doing here? Surely, he wasn’t going to string Loki all the way along to Prom? He wouldn’t completely ruin his reputation like that would he? Loki tried to remember the exact wording of the bet; oh god, he wouldn’t have to go to Prom would he?

“We’re not... I mean... not that I wouldn’t... baby steps...” Tony babbled. 

“It’s too soon... we haven’t even... we’re certainly not...” Loki rambled. 

“Congratulations, Darce. You broke them.” Clint snickered. 

“Ignore Darcy, she’s.... well, just ignore her,” Natasha said. Darcy stuck her tongue out at the other girl. Both Loki and Tony laughed along uncomfortably, but the mood was distinctly less casual than it had just been. 

After lunch, Tony walked with Loki to Calculus as his Statistics class was just a few doors down. 

“About what Darcy...” Tony started. 

Loki’s heart clenched. Yes, he definitely needed to nip this in the bud. “Don’t worry, Tony. I don’t think that way.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“I know this is nothing more than getting to know each other, because you felt bad. Really, I don’t have any expectations. It’s just... fun,” Loki rushed to assure him or maybe to keep the bet going. How could even _ he _ know at this point? 

“Fun... yeah. I guess...” Tony looked a little uncomfortable. Obviously, he didn’t think Loki meant it. Or he needed Loki to agree that it was dating for the bet to be valid. How had Loki gotten himself in this deep?

“Really, Tony. I’m not that delusional. I know you could never feel that way about someone like me, so really you can drop it,” Loki assured him, even daring to set a hand on Tony’s shoulder at this point. 

Tony frowned at him for a moment, and Loki drew his hand back. Maybe he had overreached? He shouldn’t have done the hand on the shoulder thing. That was stupid and ridiculously presumptuous. Tony just kept frowning, not really making eye contact, which felt really odd now that Loki had gotten used to Tony’s rapt attention. 

“Well, Statistics, so... yeah, see ya.” Tony gave Loki a half-hearted wave, before turning and walking into his classroom. 

Loki watched him leave; while he did, he had the awful feeling like this would be the last time. Like, what they had going, this odd, tentative friendship that felt so exciting and perfect to Loki, but was of course all a façade on Tony’s part, was at an end. Now that Tony had gotten confirmation that he had successfully tricked Loki into a relationship, there was no need for this ruse. 

Loki sighed and tried not to feel shattered. He knew this was coming; knew this all had a built-in endpoint, but he had hoped that it wouldn’t be this quickly. Part of him hadn’t really believed that he could adore Tony any more than he had before; oh, how wrong he had been. 

Pining. Unrequited love. He could use this. He could pour this into his character, get his emotions out and then, maybe, he could be done with them. Loki forcefully kept himself from blinking, not wanting the wetness in his eyes to pool into tears. He could do this. Just another month and the school year would be over; no more Thor... no more Tony... he told himself it would be a relief. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My undying love to those that caught the Dr. Who reference.


	4. Chapter 4

“Think not on him till to-morrow; I’ll devise thee great punishments for him. Strike up pipers!” Loki, or Benedict rather, pulled Beatrice, also known as Natasha, to him and took off into a lively dance. Natasha laughed as he spun her and the rest of the cast onstage paired up to dance as well. It was fun; he was married and in mutually requited love and just  _ happy _ . Loki could stay right here forever. 

But the stage went dark and the curtain fell; Loki was brought back to himself in a rush that wasn’t nearly as pleasant as the one from dancing. The cast got ready for the final bows; Loki was going last with Natasha. They waited offstage; he grabbed her hand and she shot him a wide smile. 

Just after Darcy went and got her well-deserved applause, Loki and Natasha followed. He let go of Natasha’s hand so she could do a graceful curtsy and then took his bow. There was a loud whistle and a shout from the audience. Loki believed for a moment that it was Tony. It definitely sounded like him, but that would be preposterous. 

Tony hadn’t completely broken contact like Loki had thought he would. No, he had chatted with Loki in Physics just like had become the norm. He had texted and talked and done pretty much everything as before, but there had been this undercurrent to it all. This feeling like Darcy had torn open the curtain on what was going on and now neither of them could hide. 

Then it was the group bow and that was it, at least for opening night. Acting, being on stage was always amazing, but afterwards he always got what he imagined a hangover would feel like, an emotional hangover at least. But he thought he did well, the director and Natasha seemed to think so, each conveying their approval. 

After he had gotten changed, Loki walked out into the auditorium’s lobby and was immediately assaulted. Thor pulled him into a hug that lifted him off his feet. There was no point in fighting it, but he deliberately did not hug back. 

“That was awesome, brother. Very funny!” Thor said, beaming at him after he put Loki down. 

Loki and Thor had never been close, but he had felt even more awkward than usual around his brother with everything with Tony. Mostly he’d just avoided the guy, fairly easy considering Thor’s social schedule, he was almost always out with Steve, Fandral, Jane or any other of a number of his friends. So, Thor hadn’t even noticed the distance, the oaf. Still, the support was nice, not that he’d ever let Thor know. 

“You were brilliant, darling,” his mother said, pulling him in for a much lighter hug. 

“Thank you,” Loki said earnestly. He was truly grateful for his mother; Thor may always be the golden child, but their mother did at least  _ try _ to be fair. 

“There are worse things to be good at, I suppose,” his father grumbled. “It was enjoyable enough.” 

His mother beamed at what was, from his father at least, effusive praise. The man certainly wasn’t going to hug him. Loki managed a small smile, but he couldn’t help thinking of sitting next to his father at one of Thor’s football games, seeing the pride spark in his eye. Oh well, this was probably as good as he was going to get. 

“Well, we won't keep you. I know you’ll be going out with your friends. I love you, darling.” His mother kissed him on the forehead pulling him into a one-armed hug. Loki allowed it as patiently as he could manage. Really, all this affection was just embarrassing. 

“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!” Thor admonished with a wink. 

Loki rolled his eyes. His general criteria for behavior was not doing anything Thor  _ would  _ do. 

His father just fiddled with the keys in his pocket, frowning impatiently, and turned to lead the rest of the family out. 

Once his family had left, Loki moved more or less smoothly through the crowd. Without the costume and ponytail, most people who didn’t know him already didn’t recognize who he was, so he was only stopped a few times for some praise or greeting. As much as he generally ate those types of regards whole, he was mostly just trying to get away as soon as possible. Every time he was stopped his eyes scanned the crowd looking for that messy mop of dark hair over brown eyes and a band t-shirt. 

But Tony was nowhere to be seen. Of course, he wasn’t. He had agreed to attend before the dare had been completed. Why would he hold up to it now? He wouldn’t. Loki just thought he would because he had let himself fall for the act. He had never really believed that Tony _ liked _ him that way, but he had thought, hoped, that Tony at least liked him a bit. Enough to maybe take some time on a Friday night to see him and several of their classmates. That wouldn’t have been so bad right? 

Loki scoffed at himself, staring down as he stomped through the parking lot. He was pathetic. He had been in on the scam the whole time and still he fell for it. Was he really that needy? That starved for attention? He wasn’t going to answer that, not even in his head. He slowed his pace as he came up to where he parked, hand fumbling in his pocket for his keys. 

He had just pulled the keys out when a cleared throat made him drop them. He looked up to glare at the offender as he crouched down to retrieve them. All thoughts of keys and offense flew out the window when he got a good look at just who was standing next to his car. 

Loki was fairly sure that he had never seen anything so appealing in his entire life. Part of him almost hoped that he never would again; he’d never survive it. Tony was next to his car, leaning on the driver’s door casually, proud grin on his face. Also, he was wearing a suit. An amazingly tailored black suit with a grey undershirt and shiny red tie. He looked so good that the word itself was almost offensive in its deficiency. Loki was struck by a wave of pure want, not all physical, and he fought not to shudder. 

The icing on the cake was what was in the teen’s hand. He was holding a bouquet of flowers. But they were the most unique dozen roses Loki had ever seen. They were a mix of black and dark green. Loki hadn’t even realized you could get roses in colors like that. For flair, because it was Tony Stark and there had to be flair, the tops looked like they had been dipped in melted gold. 

They were the most beautiful things he had ever seen. They were so Tony, and yet so him, at the same time. Loki’s eyes prickled with tears; he really hoped that Tony wasn’t going to expect him to talk, because he was pretty sure that he wasn’t going to be able to manage anything coherent right now. 

“Hey there, gorgeous! You were amazing! You were funny and sweet, and I didn’t understand half of what you said, but it didn’t really matter because I would have gone for anything if it kept you in those tight pants. Please tell me you get to take those home as a souvenir?” 

Loki was pretty sure he knew what all those words were, but maybe Tony was trying to be funny because none of them made sense; starting with gorgeous. This was just a completely different Tony than he had been dealing with. Tony had always been generally flirty, that’s just how he was, but these obviously admiring comments? His pants? It was like Tony was continuing a path that Loki had dropped off of before it got to the good stuff. 

Tony must have realized that Loki was having a hard time processing because he winced. 

“Shit, I’m sorry. I got ahead of myself again. It’s just, I’d been thinking a lot about what Darcy said the other day, about us dating. I hadn’t even really thought about you and me like that. Ok, that’s a total lie; obviously, I’d idly thought about it. I mean, we’ve been flirting around from day one, you’re too damn attractive for that not to have been a thing, but it wasn’t until she said it that I realized how much I wanted it. The actual relationship thing, not just flirting and cuddling. But I thought you’d appreciate the formal thing and, so, I decided to ask you properly, and I figured your play would be the perfect occasion. Then I got to stare at you being all seductive and adorable and funny all night and I think I’ve just been thinking of you as my boyfriend for days now, so my mouth just shot off like it was an inevitability. Which, I mean, obviously it’s not, you can say no, but I’m really hoping you don’t.” 

Oh. Loki’s stomach fell. Tony needed something more official for his bet with Stone. Maybe Loki would have to tell Tiberius himself that they were dating for Tony to win. That’s why he was doing this out in the parking lot instead of where anyone else could see. He wouldn’t want anybody he wasn’t betting against actually thinking he was really dating Loki. Sitting in the lunchroom with Clint and two attractive girls was all well and good, but this would be too much. Unless, this was the Prom proposal that would solidify the dare? But could Tony really go through with actually showing up at the dance with Loki?

It was fine; Loki could do this. Heaven help him, he wanted Tony to win, to get everything he wanted. And selfishly, it bought him more time with the genius. Maybe he could drag out seeing Stone for a few days or even a week. Just enough to soak this feeling in a little bit more before giving it up forever. 

So, Loki smiled, even as his eyes still swam with tears. He was a good actor; he would make Tony believe it. “Of course, I’d really like that Tony.” 

Tony grinned so wide at Loki’s words that he couldn’t help but wonder just what it was Tony was getting out of this. It had to be something pretty amazing. Then before Loki could react, Tony stepped forward, slid a hand up Loki’s neck and pulled him in slightly for a kiss. 

The kiss was... perfect. It was everything Loki had wanted from a first kiss. It was soft and sweet but with an undercurrent that promised more in the future. It was everything he had always wanted. 

The kiss was... awful. It was false and fake with a callousness under it all that made Loki question how he could have possibly fallen for Tony in the first place. 

Rage and pain and hurt welled up in Loki until he couldn’t take it anymore. He shoved Tony back violently. Tony’s face showed surprise as they parted, but it melted into concern as he saw the tears streaming down Loki’s face. It probably wasn’t concern; it was probably frustration that something wasn’t going Tony’s way. That for the first time ever, he wasn’t getting what he wanted. But, of course, Loki knew Tony now; knew this wasn’t the first time. That when it mattered, Tony rarely got what he wanted. But still, Loki just couldn’t go through with this. Damn him. 

“I can’t do this,” Loki shouted and Tony winced, actually looking wounded. It just made Loki even more angry. “I’m sorry if it means you don’t win your stupid bet, but I can’t believe you are this person. That you would play with my emotions this much on a whim, a dare. I’m going to have to live with the fact that my first kiss was a complete lie, but I’m not giving you any more than that.” 

Tony’s furrowed brow and the lack of argument was just the cherry on top of a night that Loki would never forget. He grabbed his keys and shoved by Tony to get in his car. He started it and backed out in a daze, grateful that there were no other cars anywhere near for him to accidentally hit. No, the only implement in sight was the deer in headlights that Loki need to get as far away from as possible. 

He didn’t drive to meet his fellow actors at the Denny’s per tradition. He couldn’t face his family at home. So, Loki drove slowly through the neighborhood, blinking through his tears to try to keep from doing anything stupid. He ended up just parking in the Elementary school parking lot and crying until no more tears came. 

The best part was that he had brought all this on himself. He had all of the information he needed to cut Tony off at the pass, but he had let himself get swept away in the fantasy. Then he let Tony break him. He knew that he should just pick up the pieces, put himself back together. But he wasn’t sure where to start. Wasn’t sure when he’d have the energy to. 

He wasn’t so naïve as to think his life was over at 17. This was high school. He’d fall in love and have his heart broken many more times he was sure. He wasn’t going to pretend that he would never love again. But it was also his first kiss. You only got one, and his would forever be tainted. There was no getting that back. 

When Loki had cried himself to near exhaustion, he finally turned the engine back on and started for home. It was late enough by now that if anyone was up, they wouldn’t think anything of him coming home. He just had some fun with his friends celebrating their play’s success. Fortunately, tomorrow was Saturday. He didn’t have to face anyone until the evening where he would do tonight all over again, hopefully this time sans the emotional rollercoaster, outside of the play at least. He would get up on that stage and he would be completely fine, completely Benedict. The show must go on, after all. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As predicted, Loki finally exploded...


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we go! On to the resolution!

Loki walked through the halls of the school Monday morning like a hunted rabbit. He desperately did not want to see Tony. He just needed to avoid him until things blew over. He didn’t know what he’d do about third period though, when he’d have to see Tony in Humanities. 

Loki practically jumped out of his skin when he turned the corner to enter the building his first period class was in and Tony was leaning against the wall just inside. Why couldn’t he just leave it be? What more could he possibly want to accomplish? And why did he have to look so damn good when Loki felt like crap? For possibly the 100 th time since Friday night, Loki bemoaned the fact that life wasn’t fair. 

“Loki! I need to talk to you!” Tony ran his hand through his hair. Now that Tony was looking up, Loki could see he actually didn’t look that great. His hair was disheveled, there were bags under his eyes, and he had a distinct amount of stubble that, at their age, indicated that he hadn’t shaved since before Friday. 

“I’ve said all I need to, Stark.” Loki spat out, trying to reconnect with that simmering rage he had so enjoyed on Saturday. 

“Yeah, but I didn’t get my turn.” Tony said, grabbing on to Loki’s arm as he tried to walk away. It wasn’t a hard grab, but Loki glared at him nonetheless. 

“Let. Go. Of. Me,” Loki growled. 

Tony did so immediately, holding his hands up in surrender. “I’m sorry, but this is just too important to me.” 

Tony put his hands down and sighed. “You are too important to me to just let it drop with what happened on Friday.” 

God, Tony was going to make him cry at school now. Like he needed some other reason to be the laughing stock. What more could Tony possibly need from him? They dated. They kissed. Did they still have to go to Prom together? Tony didn’t actually think he could convince Loki of that, did he? 

“You have until the bell rings for passing period,” Loki said, staring at his watch. “I’d suggest quick and succinct, if you’re even capable of that.” 

Tony grinned slightly. “You know me so well. Look Loki, it took me a while, but I worked it out. You overheard Ty and I talking; I always forget and leave that damn microphone on. But I never took his dare. Honestly, I used your brother as an excuse. Told him that there was nothing that he could give me to make me face Thor, but I wouldn’t have done that to anyone.” 

“Oh, so you suddenly befriending me that very day was just a massive coincidence?” Loki shot back. He knew Tony hadn’t said those words precisely. What he said was that it would take a lot, not that he wouldn’t do it. 

“Not a coincidence, no. I mean, I can’t say that him bringing up your name didn’t put you on my radar. But I was being honest when I said that I felt bad about our conversation in the sound booth. That really was...” 

The bell rang. Tony’s arms dropped to his sides and his shoulders drooped in defeat. 

“Sorry Stark. Your time’s up,” Loki said coldly. I so want to believe you, I just can’t let myself, he thought. Damn it, now Tony was the one looking at him all crushed. Could he really be telling the truth? Did Loki dare hope?

“If everything was so genuine, why were you too afraid to bring me flowers in front of people? You skulked in the dark parking lot instead of meeting me in the lobby. If you really cared about me like that, you wouldn’t be ashamed to show it.” Loki turned quickly on his heel, not wanting to look at those sad brown eyes another minute. 

“You don’t like the attention...” came the ragged, barely intelligible response behind him. 

Loki curled into himself as he autopiloted to class. Tony was just the same as everyone else. He saw the façade and took it for face value; the worst thing was that Loki couldn’t blame him. He’d done the same with their ‘relationship’. But the point was that Tony just didn’t get it. Loki could only hope that someday, there would be someone who could. 

***** 

Tony didn’t even try to talk to him again in Humanities. He just went right back to sitting at the back of the class, looking like someone had keyed his Audi. Good, he should practice that look. He was going to wish that someone had just scratched his car when Natasha got through with him. Loki stewed in righteous fury, imagining all the terrible things Natasha would do to Tony when the story came out. It certainly made Humanities go by quickly. He enjoyed it so much that he did the same during the next few periods, though he spent Drama class in the library rather than face his friends.

Lunch-time came around and, despite his musings, Loki still wasn’t ready to face Darcy, Natasha and Clint yet. He definitely wasn’t going to face lunch period without Tony. So, he took the coward’s way out and hid in the library. It was dark and quiet and everything that Loki had loved before the bright and loud Tony Stark became such a figure in his life. Loki tried to stoke the flames of his anger, but they were mostly burnt away by this point. All Loki was left with was cold emptiness. 

Physics was the same as humanities had been. A morose Tony Stark sitting in the back and a quiet Loki Odinson sitting in the front. Dr. Strange shot him a concerned look. For a terrifying moment, Loki thought he might actually try to talk to him after class, but Dr. Strange just nodded to him as he got out of his seat and said goodbye with a sad smile on his face. 

The next day was much like the first, going through the motions of his life until things could get back to normal again. Avoiding Tony, avoiding his friends, doing everything he could to just wile away the days until that blessed summer break. He should have known he couldn’t get away with it forever. 

*****

“It’s cute how he pretends he can’t hear us,” Natasha cooed. 

“Yeah, I think we should just talk right here about the play, since Loki’s been avoiding us all week. How good was I, right?” Darcy giggled. 

“You were adorable Darcy, but what I want to talk about is a certain Student Body President I saw in the audience with some very distinctive looking roses...” Clint said. 

“Don’t you dare, Barton,” Loki snapped. To his surprise, the three of them looked sufficiently cowed. Maybe he  _ was _ that scary. Most likely he just looked that pathetic. 

“He showed up with flowers, Loki. What could possibly have happened? Come on… we’ve let you get away without saying anything for almost a week now!” Darcy whined. 

“Yes, what does happen in your play after the man shows up with flowers?” The four students startled at Ms. Van Dyne’s voice coming from right next to them. “I do assume that is what you are talking about and not your own personal lives. You see, this collaboration time is for drama. That’s the class you are in and, contrary to popular belief, it is an actual class. So, tell me, Loki, do you need some help with this flowers scene?” 

“No, Ms. Van Dyne. I’m fine,” Loki muttered. 

“Oh, good. Then you can concentrate on writing and your friends can sit down and do the same. Excellent. Glad we got that settled.” 

Loki actually did dig into his writing at that point. He was almost finished anyways, and he rather liked it. The ending was brutal; the farthest thing from happy he could come up with. Everyone was going to hate it; it was glorious. His friends were suspiciously mute around him, but Loki startled when Natasha put her hand on Loki’s left that was laying on the table. He looked up in shock. Natasha was no more an affectionate person than he was. He would be hard pressed to say that they had ever even brushed elbows at any point. She smiled a bit at him, clearly trying to show her support. 

Loki desperately wanted to break the dam and have it all come pouring out. He hadn’t told  _ anyone  _ because of the shame, and it was killing him. But he definitely couldn’t do so in the classroom with Ms. Van Dyne hovering. He also wasn’t sure he could do it with the peanut gallery. 

Then again, if he did actually confess to Natasha, there was a serious concern that Tony Stark would go mysteriously missing, never to be seen again. The majority of Loki was 100% ok with that. But he knew that would steadily become the minority as time went on. At the end of the day, he knew it was his own fault. Tony could never have led him where he chose not to follow. It was his grave, he needed to lie in it, sans picnic this time. So instead of blurting out the entire affair, he just shook his head at Natasha. But he patted her hand to show his appreciation and turned back to his play. 

In between Fourth period and lunch was the dreaded pep assembly. Of course, it was; Prom was this weekend, so everyone needed to get pepped up for it. He really needed to skip it. The last thing he could deal with right now was seeing Tony Stark all dolled up, being presented as one of the nominees for Prom King and doing his usual speech. He was just turning to head towards the library when Natasha’s arm snaked through his left and he was pulled into her side in a firm hold. On his other side, Clint did the same. 

“Hey buddy, I think you might have forgotten that the gym is actually this way. Easy mistake to make considering your level of activity. Let me help you get there,” Clint said cheerfully. 

Darcy came up behind him and threw her arms around his waist in a hug, her forehead just barely hitting his shoulder. 

“We got you,” she whispered so only he could hear. 

Loki’s heart felt like it just might burst with affection for these three. Yes, he was absolutely going to stab each and every one of them once he inevitably escaped, but really, what else did he expect from his friends? So, Loki let himself be dragged to the stupid pep assembly. They sat down in the Junior section next to the rest of the kids from their drama class and then Loki got to distracting himself by calculating exactly how many seconds there were until the end of the school year. 

The cheerleaders did their cheerleader thing. Building human pyramids would probably be impressive if they were still in ancient Egypt. The Academic Decathlon people won an award; ok that he would actually applaud. Then Student Council did a stupid skit and Loki only flinched a bit when Tony walked out. He relaxed again when Tony was out of sight. 

“Yeah, you aren’t in love at all,” Clint muttered. Darcy elbowed him in the stomach, and he let out a very satisfying grunt. 

“Quiet down, please.” Mr. Coulson picked up the microphone and managed to silence everyone in record time. “Now I have been given the... honor... to take you through the nominees for Prom Court. Ladies first, of course.” 

Loki stilled again. Ugh, it wasn’t over. They were going to announce why Tony was so damn popular and all of the amazing things he did. Though, Loki couldn’t say he wasn’t dying to know who Tony had gotten to go to Prom with him. They’d be announcing that as well, of course. He could do this. He was stone, no, he was ice; frozen through and through. 

It was 34,867 minutes until the bell rang on the last day of the school year. Just need to multiply that by 60... 

“Tony Stark.” Remarkably fast, or maybe he had been just that effective at distracting himself, Coulson had gotten to the man in question. “Mr. Stark is, of course, the Student Body President. He also...” 

Instead of walking across the gym with the token adorable kindergartener, Tony walked right up to Mr. Coulson, gave him his biggest grin and snatched the microphone out of his hand. Loki suddenly had a very bad feeling. 

“Can everyone hear me?” 

Loud shouts in the affirmative. 

“Haha, yeah, sorry. Had to check. Mics have this tendency to screw me over. Sorry, Agent, I just gotta do this thing and then you can have the mic back. Promise.” Tony shot finger guns at Coulson who rolled his eyes, but stepped back anyways to let Tony have the floor. “Hey everybody, I’m... well, you know who I am.” 

Laughter. Loki was seriously considering just getting up and leaving right now. His prison guards must have sensed this because their holds became just a bit tighter. He was actually going to have to listen to this. He had no idea what he was going to be listening to, but he knew he wouldn’t like it. 

“So, Coulson’s going to list out all the stuff I do and why I’m awesome and don’t get me wrong, that’s all great; love that stuff, but what I’m really focusing on is the whole ‘who I’m taking to Prom thing’ because the thing is, I don’t have a date.” 

There were actual gasps in the audience. Mostly female, but still. And they called Loki dramatic. 

“See, there was someone I really wanted to take. It was kind of new, so I wanted to do it right. Got all dolled up, got some not-inexpensive flowers, the whole nine yards. But I kind of got ahead of myself and flubbed the thing before I could get around to asking. So, I guess I’ll just have to do it here.” 

There was no possible way; no way in hell was Tony Stark walking over to where they were sitting. He definitely wasn’t standing on the floor just in front of where Loki was currently being held hostage 6 rows up. He couldn’t possibly be making eye contact. Loki actually thought he might faint. He’d never live it down, but it might just happen. 

“Loki, you’re amazing. I can’t believe it took me four years to really see you. But once I talked to you, it took only a few days for me to realize you were something special. When I finally got to see you onstage, I fell, and I fell hard. And I am absolutely unashamed to say that in front of the entire school. I’m sorry about the misunderstanding, but I hope this helps to show that I am being completely sincere here. I really do like you, a lot, like kind of ridiculously so. Hence the extremely public display.” 

Loki wasn’t quite sure what he felt. He was this strange mix of elated and mortified. He could feel all the eyes in the room on him and damn, that was a lot of eyes. He’d never had that many people looking at him, Loki him, ever. It was exciting and at the same time nerve-wracking, because what the hell was he supposed to do here? 

Of course, Tony would go for the big dramatic gesture when intimate and sweet failed him. It was so Tony Stark. It made sense, for the bet, but Loki just couldn’t believe that he would go through this much trouble for whatever Tiberius Stone could provide, because honestly, what was there that Stone could get that Stark couldn’t? 

If that was true, that would mean that Tony was being completely genuine in his advances and that... that was almost worse than the dare. It was certainly scarier. This could actually be something; something that mattered. Something that Loki wanted, and he might actually get. When did that  _ ever _ happen? 

“So, this is the part where I ask you to go with me to Prom, but to be completely honest, I’m really scared of the answer. I’m not sure that I can take getting rejected in front of the entire student body, maybe I’m just fragile that way.” Chuckles rumbled through the room. “But, uh, Loki? Do you think you could come down here and maybe continue our conversation in private?” 

Loki just blinked down at Tony. Well, at least he could still remember how to do that; he wasn’t totally out of it then. Natasha nudged him from one side and Loki turned to her wide-eyed. 

“You can’t do any better than that for sweeping romantic gesture.” Natasha shrugged. 

“Come on! You know you want to! You’ve been infinitely less mopey lately, before the play at least. Let’s continue that,” Darcy encouraged from behind. 

“He’s a good guy. And he may be over the top, but he’s still never been this crazy for anybody but you,” Clint said. 

So, Loki nodded and managed a smile. Tony whooped and the entire room started clapping. It was ridiculous and adorable. Clint and Natasha finally let him out of their grip, but just so that they could prod him down the bleachers. Tony grinned like it was going to break his face as Loki was walking down. 

Once Loki got to Tony’s side, the teen grabbed his hand and held it up in victory. Another round of cheers and some whistles and catcalls; Loki ducked his head to hide his blush and avoid eye contact with anyone. At that, Tony nudged him until Loki looked up. Tony winked at him and, keeping a hold on his hand, tugged him out of the gym. They jogged until they could duck into an empty classroom. Tony closed the door and there was silence but for the two of them panting. 

“I’m sorry. That was crazy, I know. I just couldn’t figure out another way to get you to listen to me.” 

“So that’s what this is about? You’re just doing this because I said to talk to me in front of other people?” 

“No, Loki. I mean, yes it was because of what you said, but not in that you told me to do it. It was because I realized in that moment that you don’t hide behind dark baggy clothes and try to blend in because you don’t want attention. If that was the case, you’d never set foot on a stage. You do it because you know you won't get the attention and you'd rather pretend it was because it was something you chose. You never said you didn’t  _ like _ attention, just that you weren’t used to it. Once I got there, everything just clicked into place. And again, I am sorry that it took me so long to get there. My brain was put together wrong. But you have my attention. I’m right here and I’m looking at you and I want everything that I see.” 

There it was... the silver platter, the gourmet meal, right in front of him. And Loki believed it. He had wanted to believe it all along, but it was really, really hard to deny public displays like that. No, it was all Tony and all real and could be all his. It was a heady realization and he was hit with the thought that he couldn’t possibly deserve this. 

He forcefully chased that thought away. No, he’d been agonizing for weeks; he’d been pining for years. He was going to take this precious thing for himself, and he was not going to ruin it. 

“So, Loki. Would you be my boyfriend? Just know if you do say yes, that kinda requires that you go to Prom with me. Silly, I know, but rules are rules.” 

“And you aren’t just asking me to the Prom because of what you said to Tiberius, right?” Loki asked, mostly teasing 

“Loki...” Tony started. 

Loki pecked him on the lips. “No, I believe you. I’m sorry I didn’t before. I was too afraid to because honestly, I’ve had a crush on you for a very, very long time. It just felt too good to be true, but I should have known that you would never do something like that.”

“So when you say a long time? How long are we talking? I mean two very’s is pretty…” Tony cut off with a grin as Loki elbowed him lightly. “So, is that a yes? It feels like a yes.”

“Yes,” Loki said with a giant grin of his own. “Besides, who am I to say no to the future Prom King? I mean, it’s only because I want to hang on your arm for all the pictures, of course...” 

Tony laughed before kissing him again. Shaking his head, he said, “You’re really going to keep me on my toes, aren’t you?” 

“Oh, you have no idea.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And they live happily ever after! 
> 
> If anybody wants to see the original prompt it is below. I stuck pretty close to the structure and just threw in my own small details. Thanks again to Greenishio for the amazing prompt! I had a blast and I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it! 
> 
> High school AU (the roles can be reversed) 
> 
> Loki has a crush on Tony but they’re not close, maybe they are rivals or even have some bad history. One day he overhears someone daring Tony to ask Loki out on a date. Tony actually just laughs it off but Loki either doesn’t hear that part or he misinterprets it as Tony agreeing. 
> 
> Because of the dare, Tony actually starts to pay more attention to Loki and ends up developing a bit of a crush. So he ends up asking Loki out. Loki of course thinks Tony is doing it as a dare and will probably reveal it later to humiliate him. But he also knows this is the closest thing to ever having a date with Tony so he agrees. 
> 
> They go on a date. Loki alternates between joy and hurt at Tony’s affectionate gestures. He finally cracks when Tony kisses him and starts tearing up angrily at the cruelty of Tony faking it to this extent.
> 
> Tony is confused and worried. From Loki’s outburst, he pieces together that Loki thinks the date is fake. He quickly denies it, telling Loki he is serious. Loki wants to believe him but can’t quite do it. 
> 
> Tony then does something dramatic and big to prove his feeling. Maybe he announces his undying love over the school’s PA, or throw some big party, or introduce Loki to all his friends and family… Loki is both embarrassed and pleased by Tony going overboard trying to convince him and they continue to have more dates and happy ending.


End file.
